I wonder if Phi was deliberately targeting the Saturday puzzle by including words and phrases like 11,12,17a and 6d?
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 6 | STO(I)C[-k] |
| 9 | SLOP,E – I did wonder at first whether “movement of water” was “flow” but I couldn’t do much with that. I have to admit that I don’t think I would ever have considered SLOP but it’s a reasonable enough definition. |
| 11 | (REASSERT A NATION)* – SAORSTAT EIREANN. From the definition I guessed that the second word could well be EIREANN but didn’t know what the first word might be. Googling EIREANN didn’t really help so I had to wait for all the checking letters and then try out all the possible combos. Apparently it’s Gaelic for “Irish Free State”. |
| 12 | RE(B)BE[-l] – guessed this from the wordplay and on the basis that it might have been another word for “rabbi” (which indeed it is). |
| 14 | K,ER,CHIEFS |
| 15 | WHISK,AMY<,C – a WHISKY MAC is a drink made with whisky (oddly enough) and ginger wine. |
| 16 | hidden reversed in “secRET ACtivity”. |
| 17 | (YOU CAN H)* – a CHANOYU is a Japanese tea ceremony. |
| 18 | AI(R)M,AN |
| 20 | (INTENSE DAYLIGHT)* – DENTAL HYGIENIST. |
| 21 | AID<,NO G<,ALLY – DIAGONALLY. |
| 22 | H[-ast]Y P[-hot]O |
| Down | |
| 1 | LAST,WARTS (going up) |
| 2 | F(ROD)O – a character in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. |
| 3 | BEEFS,TEAK TO(MAT)O |
| 4 | A CRIC[-k] (going up) |
| 5 | (MY CRIMES T)* – SYMMETRIC |
| 6 | (HIS RUM G)* – SIMURGH is a modern Persian name for a fabulous flying creature. I didn’t know this so again I had to wait for crossing letters and then Google the combinations. |
| 8 | SA in (CARTOONS)* – COSA NOSTRA. “It” is Sex Appeal or SA – quite how that become a well-known abbreviation I’ll never know. |
| 14 | CH in (MAKE UP)*,A – KAMPUCHEA is now known as Cambodia. |
| 17 | CEDED – sounds like “seeded”. |
| 18 | ANGE[L for R] |
| 19 | OTTO – an indirect hidden clue I think as “base” could be bOTTOm. |
Bit surprised to see 11 across in – I got it only after I had a lot of crossing letters – good that it was clued with an anagram.
It’s the Irish language version of the historical IRISH FREE STATE. saor = free stat = state Eireann = Irish (literally – of Ireland, the genitive case of Eire = Ireland). Forgive absence of accents. This was the name of the State from 1922 to 1937 when following legislative and constitutional changes both in Ireland and Westminster, it was no longer a Free State, but became Ireland (Republic in 1949).
Very unusual grid, with which Phi supplied the answer ‘Oh yes it is!’ before I’d got around to asking the question.
Thanks, Eimi, I see this now, I think, but certainly did not when solving.
It is, as he says, 21A (or 16A/16D) 5D.